


Inconspicuous Concupiscence

by Chibi_Chibi



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Age Difference, Fluff, M/M, Romance, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-08
Updated: 2019-07-08
Packaged: 2020-06-24 09:32:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19720975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chibi_Chibi/pseuds/Chibi_Chibi
Summary: Luhan didn't consider himself adventurous, for he was far too much of a goody-goody to ever do anything that went against his morals and values. And yet, despite all this, his inability to stay within his comfortable bubble of safety became the reason behind the demise of his innocence, for the babe found himself desperate to test the waters of darkness that came in the form of Oh Sehun, whom, despite the age difference, taught the child a thing or two about carnal pleasures, deadly desires, and subtle requests.And despite being nothing but a babe, the child couldn't understand his obsessive behaviour and lust over a man that was twice his age, because when such technicalities were disregarded, he was simply left with the satisfying desire to be wrecked and touched by the devil in disguise that awoke his inner demons by the hand of temptation. And he'll be damned for all eternity, for he enjoyed every second of it.





	Inconspicuous Concupiscence

**Author's Note:**

> Title: Inconspicuous Concupiscence 
> 
> Genre(s): Romance, Fluff, Slice of Life (to a certain extent)
> 
> Pair(s): Hunhan only
> 
> Length: Two Shots! (It's really just one but I split it in half. It turned out unintentionally long)
> 
> Additional Note: I'm apparently back on my bullshit and I'm procrastinating finishing my other stories. I'll get around one day, I promise. I originally started writing this last year (when everything went down and ironically during the world cup, which is a HUGE event in my household) but stopped halfway through. A few weeks ago I had a dream—really a memory though, for they were events that have already occurred and, to a certain extent, my deepest desires to see how everything would have turned out if I had taken the chance—that inspired me to /finally/ finish this. And it was long overdue, I know, but here we are. It's longer than intended so I split it in half and I'm currently working on editing the second part (bc I'm not fully happy with how it came out). But this is overall done. I should be posting part 2 sometime next week when I find the time to log in again.
> 
> [Extra Note for more clarification]  
> This is actually based on a real life experience of mine, hence why I added the 'slice of life' tag. I will not reveal the extent of reality I wrote (because that's the beauty of fanfiction tbh), but this story was inspired from my encounter with someone that truly had an impact in my life. It was short-lived, but it made me really happy. And it's quite something I treasure, which led me to write it down and turn it into a one shot just so I could keep it alive. It's a precious memory of mine that I found fitting to share with others (once again, without revealing the full extent of reality added to the fantasy portion of this), so I truly hope others enjoy this as much as I enjoyed living it (and writing it).

* * *

“Thank you for your purchase. Have a wonderful day, ma’am.”

Letting out a sigh, the honey-blonde male pulled out his cellphone. He wasn’t supposed to be on his phone while he was at work, but today was one of those days when his boss wasn’t around and his coworker, whom just happened to be the epitome of silence unless alcohol was involved, was procrastinating by the line whilst attempting to use the Wi-Fi of the store to watch a soccer game.

Had it not been for the fact that Germany was the one playing, Luhan couldn’t care about the score. Either way, Brazil had recently played anyways so there wouldn’t be another game of interest until they played again. And what a game it had been! The babe didn’t wake up early to save his life, but when it came down to soccer then everything be damned. The world cup only happened once every four years anyways, so sacrificing his sleeping pattern for a few weeks wouldn’t be so bad.

Or so he tried to convince himself.

“Hello! Good afternoon, sir, how may I help you?” Reciting the same line over and over again throughout the day to every customer that walked in, the babe didn’t even bother to look up from his cellphone. His group chat—one of which he had been part of for nearly three years now thanks to Kim Jongdae, the little shit that had pretty much turned his life into a living hell after introducing him to several other people that were as crazy as him—was wild, but as much as he wanted to read all the messages at once his priorities didn’t let him.

The scent of someone’s expensive cologne invaded his sensitive nostrils, forcing the babe to put his phone down to nicely (and politely) curse the customer that had the need to bathe himself in some undoubtedly-manly scented, expensive water. Unfortunately, the thought of his boss screaming at him for displaying rude behaviour in front of a customer was enough to throw the thought out the window, hence settling for mentally cursing such individual instead of verbalizing it as he initially intended.

And by far, that was the best decision yet.

“Could you please tell me where can I find the wrapping paper?”

Luhan blinked once.

Twice.

The customer standing in the front counter could only be described with one word: Gorgeous. Standing at six-foot-tall with light brown strands, the male offered the babe the most blinding smile he had ever seen in his life. Never in his twenty-one years of life had the babe seen anything (or rather anyone in this case) more appealing to the eye. With broad shoulders that could probably lift the babe’s entire body if he tried, and pouty lips that Luhan couldn’t stop staring at, the man was the epitome of handsomeness. His dark eyes stared into Luhan’s own, making the babe gulp in nervousness whilst struggling to answer the other’s simple question.

“W-Well we don’t have any regular wrapping paper at the moment. B-But we have some wedding wrapping paper if you’re interested,” said the honey-blonde male, biting his lower lip as he stopped himself from letting out a squeal and possibly embarrassing himself. After all, the older male’s define jaw was on full display for him after he turned his head to look into the line the babe had previously mentioned.

From Luhan’s perspective, he could almost see every perfect detail of the man’s face. From the scar down his right cheek to the full extent of the man’s dark eyelashes, Luhan had never seen anyone so handsome before.

“Wedding? Crap. What about gift bags?”

Unable to bring himself to speak, the babe merely pointed at the rack standing behind the man, almost smiling to himself at the way the stranger’s eyes went from confusion to amusement in a matter of seconds. And had it not been for the fact that he was too mesmerized looking at the male, Luhan would have probably laughed at the other’s unexpected body language—if throwing his head back in laughter and pretty much dragging himself to the rack behind him even counted as such. It was rather adorable for someone that was supposed to be an adult.

“Thanks, sweetheart.”

Luhan’s heart made a flip. He would have let out a squeal had it not been for the fact that he was trying to not embarrass himself.

Judging from the man’s profile, he was roughly around his thirties. If anything, mid-thirties or late thirties. The way he carried himself however, was enough to tell Luhan the male had a free spirit. He didn’t necessarily seem rich, but he seemed to be economically stable enough to be happy. And even though the child was anything but economically stable—he still lived with his parents, for God’s sake! Yes, he was slightly more stable than his older sister for sure, but he still required assistance from his family; he’d most likely die on his own—he wasn’t as happy as the male seemed to be.

Perhaps that’s what Luhan found so intriguing.

“I think these bags are too small. Would you mind if I stepped out for a second to see if the gift fits inside? I swear I’ll bring it back.” Unable to stop himself from smiling, the babe merely nodded and watched as the man walked out the door. Honestly, at this point, Luhan could care less if the man didn’t bring the bag back as long as he got to see him again. The slight trail of the male’s cologne still lingered in the air, and Luhan couldn’t help but to feel some form of attachment to the scent. As opposed to a few minutes ago, the scent brought a sense of comfort to the blond, and the thought of seeing the brunet once again brought an unconscious smile to his face.

“I wonder who’s the reason behind that pretty smile,” said no one other than the brunet, unbeknown to him that his face and scent were the ones behind the babe’s current flushing face. He also scared the lights out of the boy, for he had been too busy thinking about the stranger that he hadn’t realized he was back inside. “Sweetheart, the gift didn’t fit. Where did you say the wrapping paper is?” Almost unable to speak, the babe merely pointed at the second aisle and watched as the brunet left the front counter.

He let out a sigh of exasperation.

The burning sensation wasn’t going away, and truth to be told, he was not about to embarrass himself any further. He was so used to customers using pet names on him, but hearing it from someone he genuinely found attractive was something neither his face nor heart could take.

Minho, whom had been watching the game on his phone the whole time, let out an annoying smirk that Luhan decided to ignore. The male seriously had some great timing. He had probably watched the entire interaction between the two of them. Luhan was done for and he knew it. Shaking his head at his coworker, the babe sent his coworker a threatening glare whilst the other male went back to the game, almost finding it difficult to believe he had forgotten about the putrid existence of the latter.

Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, the brunet was back to the front now, this time holding a simple silver wrapping paper with little roses all the way around. “I know. But it’s the best I can get in less than ten minutes and quite frankly, I don’t care about the design. I just need any wrapping paper at this point,” said the brunet, sending the babe a pretty smile that he found almost impossible to reciprocate. He was still too petrified by the other’s beauty to say anything anymore.

“W-Well yeah. It doesn’t look much like a wedding design anyways.” Lies. Luhan knew better than to say that. The design screamed “wedding” in any possible language, but the way in which the other’s face light up at the babe’s sudden reassurance was enough to make Luhan feel proud of himself for once.

“Mission accomplished then!”

There he was again, showing the blonde babe the most beautiful smile he had ever seen, nearly blinding the living lights out of Luhan as he wondered if he should mourn the loss of the sun, for it had been officially unemployed by the reincarnation of Lucifer himself. Because quite frankly, only the devil would be _that_ good-looking and use his smug look at his advantage—which he was not doing, but that’s how it felt like to the younger male.

Forcing his fingers to move, the blonde finally managed to hand the male his change (without tripping over his words) and offered to bag his single item just out of politeness (or maybe to buy him a few extra seconds to admire his physique and handsomeness). Yes, he was probably acting like a thirsty little shit, but given the circumstances he couldn’t bring himself to care. Baekhyun would probably laugh at him once he told him the story, but hey! What are friends for anyways?

“Thank you so much, sweetheart. There’s no need for a bag. And thank you for your help. You did amazing today.”

And just like that, the sun was suddenly gone. There were no more brown strands and the walking tree was officially out of the store. There were no dark eyes staring into his soul, and no more pouty lips trying to make a conversation with him.

Pulling out his phone (whilst simultaneously scolding himself for being such a fangirl), the babe opened his group chat and sent one of the most dangerous messages he had ever sent throughout his two years in the chat. Because even though he knew his kinks and preferences, ogling older men with amazing physiques, bathed in expensive cologne that left a little trail wherever they went was _definitely not_ one of them.

 **Me (2:30 PM)**  
Holy macaroni  
I need one of you to slap some sense into me

 **Baekshiet (2:31 PM)**  
*slaps*

 **Me (2:31 PM)**  
I just saw a fine piece of man walking into my job and dear  
lord. He smelled like heaven. Idk whose daddy that was  
(literally. He was probably in his early or mid-30s but he looked  
good) but if they don’t claim him I might keep him and  
that will be bad

 **Baekshiet (2:31 PM)**  
do he got a ring

 **Me (2:32 PM)**  
And he was such a sweetheart for God’s sake!  
IDK I WASN’T CHECKING OUT HIS FINGERS WHEN HIS  
FACE WAS RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME

 **Minnie-hyung~ (2:32 PM)**  
oohhhhhhhh

 **Baekshiet (2:32 PM)**  
IS HE STILL THERE

 **Me (2:32 PM)**  
NOOOOO HE JUST LEFT AND IM DEVASTATED NOW  
TT^TT

 **Baekshiet (2:32 PM)**  
Just pull up and be like hey you hella attractive  
would u like to meet up some time

 **Me (2:33 PM)**  
MY COWORKER IS LIKE “YOU GOT A LITTLE DROOL  
THERE” BUT I CAN’T HELP IT. HE LOOKED GOOD

 **Baekshiet (2:33 PM)**  
NUUU  
WHAT DID HE COME IN FOR  
DID HE LEAVE HIS NAME  
HIS ADDRESS  
HIS PHONE NUMBER

 **Me (2:33 PM)**  
EXCUSE ME?! ME A 21 YEAR OLD AIN’T READY  
FOR COMMITMENT. I AIN’T TRYING TO RAISE NO  
KIDS!

 **Baekshiet (2:34 PM)**  
LMFAOOOOO  
WHAT IF HE JUST LOOKED OLD  
he can be a sugar daddy

 **Me (2:34 PM)**  
LMFAO HE LEFT ME MONEY BC HE PAID FOR  
GIFT WRAPPING PAPER BUT THAT’S ALL

 **Baekshiet (2:35 PM** )  
HOW GOOD LOOKING ARE WE TALKING  
LIKE GEORGE CLOONEY?

 **Me (2:35 PM)**  
Who dat?  
But jokes aside to be old he looked good. He  
was nice and sweet and I’m sure he has a  
beautiful family so T-T

 **Baekshiet (2:35 PM)**  
O_O

 **Minnie Hyung~ (2:36 PM)**  
Awww Lulu~~

Well…at least his friends seemed to be somewhat supportive of whatever interaction had just happened with the handsome stranger. Perhaps it wasn’t the healthiest thing to be obsessing over someone that was potentially three times his age, but Luhan couldn’t seem to care. It wasn’t every day he stumbled upon someone that made him desperate enough to not be a virgin, but regardless of the situation it was already in the past. Despite how mesmerized he was by the man, he knew he was being delusional by daydreaming about someone he would never see again, but who cares?

At least Baekhyun and Minnie had a good laugh.

Luhan’s bubble of happiness had to be interrupted once again however, for he was currently at work and he couldn’t afford to slack off.

The lingering traces of the expensive cologne eventually diffused enough to not be detected anymore, and for the first time in hours, Luhan finally forgot about the handsome stranger from earlier.

* * *

“Why do I have to go get your pastry? Starbucks is literally at the end of the block, Minho. Stop being lazy.”

The following day, the babe had gone back to his daily routine, but it seemed to him like God was bored enough up there because he was clearly testing the babe’s nonexistent patience. As soon as he had walked in, Minho had decided to send him to Starbucks to buy a slice of ice lemon cake. Can you believe that? Minho, his annoying coworker, decided to make Luhan feel like a personal servant. The audacity!

“The game is about to start! Come on, love! Do this for your awesome coworker just this once,” said the other male, playfully patting Luhan’s head the same way Luhan had seen him petting puppies in the past. Minho’s audacity was at a whole different level, the babe thought.

“Fine, I’ll go. But you’re buying me a Mocha Frappuccino. I am not about to go there and not get myself something.” Rolling his eyes at the babe’s sabotage, the male simply handed him a ten-dollar bill and went back to watching the soccer game. Luhan smiled to himself as he walked out of the store and towards the end of the block, almost praising himself for successfully forcing his recent craving on Minho. Had he known the male would give in and pay for his drink, he would have asked for a chocolate croissant as well, but his drink would do for now.

If there was one thing Luhan absolutely hated about this Starbucks, other than the morning crew, then it was the ridiculous amount of time he had to wait to order. Apparently, the workers thought it’d be funny to slam the front window closed right when it was his turn to order, and had it not been for the fact that he was forcing himself to stay quiet and not snap, then the girl at the register would be on the floor crying by now. But he felt benevolent today, hence why he inhaled and exhaled a few times to let go of the anger.

And after what it felt like ages—he had to wait a whole ten minutes before the stupid girl from before came back to the register—the babe _finally_ managed to place his order. Now he only had to wait another twenty minutes for his drink and Minho’s pastry. The babe was fantasizing about murder again and he tried his best to calm down again but damn. He was already annoyed and all the workers merely chilling by the counter talking amongst themselves instead of working on his goddamn drink was enough to _almost_ make the babe snap.

But Kim Jongin—his childhood friend and neighbor of literally ten years—and his _“kumbayah”_ piece of crap popped into Luhan’s head and made him realize he needed to calm down before he blew up the place.

Speaking of Jongin, the babe had yet to hear from the male. They lived in the same block and all it took was a simple walk of two minutes to reach each other, yet the adorable male was nowhere to be found. Luhan had texted him several days prior, but no response ever came. Maybe it was time to contact Junmyeon and ask about his younger brother’s whereabouts. Not that Luhan was dying to know where the younger male was, but he was concerned about him. It had been a while since he last heard from him.

Did he get sick again? Had his mom sent him away to see his eldest brother maybe? If Jongin had left the state without saying anything to Luhan, then the babe would make sure to hurt him in places where the sun didn’t shine next time.

How long had it been now? Five minutes? Why were the workers still gathering around the stupid counter and gossiping amongst themselves instead of making the goddamn drink?

“Nice to see you again, sweetheart!”

Luhan knew that voice.

In fact, Luhan knew the smell of the overly priced scented water that was filling up his personal space and distracting him from the commotion going on behind the counter—the one where the workers were previously chilling and disregarding Luhan’s drink for the sake of some gossip, or so Luhan thought, only to find all the females distracted by the sight of the fine piece of specimen currently standing behind him—as the male spoke to him as if they were long-lost best friends that had just reunited after ages of not seeing each other.

Okay, Luhan was just being dramatic now, but could anyone blame him? He wasn’t expecting to ever see the male again. He had treated their previous encounter as a magical memory that he would forever remember and then regret never saying anything to the man. Yet, here he was, standing right behind him, towering over the nervous child as he inhaled the scent of the elder’s addictive cologne.

_Crap, crap, crap!_

Having no other choice than to turn around, the babe pressed his lips in a thin line as he took in the sight of the man standing in front of him now. Dressed in a simple white, long sleeved shirt tucked into a pair of gray dressing pants, the child couldn’t help but to notice how appealing the older man really was. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled up to his elbows, fully displaying the veins that ran down his arms all the way down to his hands. He wasn’t even wearing any dressing shoes, but rather a pair of white converse that were slightly dirty from what Luhan assumed was random sand and dirt.

Overall, Luhan was mesmerized by the man, and as much as he hated admitting this to himself, there was absolutely _no way_ he’d ever attempt to make a move on him.

Meanwhile, to his disdain, Luhan was dressed up in a pair of ripped overalls and a cotton pink, long sleeved shirt that was probably too childish in the eyes of the man in front of him. And to add the cherry on top, he matched the cotton pink shirt with the limited-edition snoopy vans his mother had given him for Christmas.

Clearly, God didn’t pity him enough to give them a more appealing encounter. He had to choose one of the worst possible days for them to meet-up again. Luhan was ready to cry. He looked like a stupid child compared to the man in front of him.

“You’re not smiling today. Are you okay?”

No, he wasn’t. While he looked like he walked out of a fashion magazine, Luhan looked like the neighbor’s long-lost child that walked away from the playground when no one was looking. How could he possibly smile when he dreaded his current appearance?

“H-Hi again,” said the babe, finding it almost impossible to see the older man right in the eyes due to their current circumstances.

“What a coincidence. Thanks for yesterday. Apparently, you were completely right and the wrapping paper mission was a success—for the most part. There were some technicalities that shouldn’t be mentioned, but it all worked out thanks to you,” said the brunet, offering the child the most beautiful smile he had ever seen and making his poor, little heart skip a beat or two—or more than that really, but his fake heart attack symptoms could be dealt with later.

Preferably when the most handsome man he had ever seen wasn’t standing in front of him.

“I’m glad I could help. We suck in the gift-wrapping department, so I’m honestly glad it all worked out for you,” said the honey-blonde male, offering the stranger a pretty smile that had the brunet staring a him in adoration. If only Luhan had noticed it.

“I’m Sehun, by the way. Oh Sehun,” said the male, stretching his hand out for the babe to shake.

Even his name was pretty and unique.

Lord have mercy. It had been roughly three minutes and Luhan was already far from whipped.

“I-I’m Luhan, but everyone calls me Lulu. You can call me that, too.”

Lulu? Seriously? He just _had_ to add the cherry on top and mention that everyone used his childhood nickname as opposed to his full name. Good job, Luhan! It wasn’t like the outfit and demeanor weren’t embarrassing enough, but why not add the cherry on top and take the embarrassment to another level?

“Lulu? That’s adorable. In that case, nice to meet you, Lulu.”

Offering the brunet a genuine smile, the child shook the elder’s hand and didn’t miss the difference in size, for Sehun’s whole hand easily swallowed Luhan’s prettier one. And for some reason, the babe couldn’t help but to think that his hand fit Sehun’s manlier one perfectly.

Clearly, he wasn’t only whipped, but now he was delusional too. Way to go, Luhan. Way to go!

“Mocha Frappuccino for Lulu!”

And just like that, the brunet let go of the male’s hand so Luhan could turn around and retreat his overdue drink. Out of all the days the workers could have stepped up their game and make his drink in under ten minutes, they chose today. Today of all days when he bumped into Sehun again. The stupid crew never took under ten minutes to help him, but of course they had to ruin their far-from-perfect reencounter by actually doing their job properly.

Luhan was ready to snap at someone at this point, preferably the guy with the sleeve-in-progress that never got his drink right. Their beef had long been overdue and Luhan sincerely considered snapping at him already for the sake of releasing his inner frustration, but he remembered Sehun was still standing behind him and that was a side of him he didn’t want to show him.

“I have to go back to work. But I’m glad we bumped into each other today. And I’m also glad the wrapping paper worked. Please visit us again next time. Maybe we’ll have some better wrapping paper to offer you,” said the babe, almost blushing in embarrassment after realizing he was subtly promoting the stupid store he worked at. It wasn’t like they had anything interesting to offer anyways, yet here he was trying to get others to come and check them out—though, Sehun could technically be considered an exception, for the child had alternative motives, but those were technicalities not worth mentioning out loud.

“Nice to see you, love. I’ll definitely come see you again soon.” The elder sent the child a playful smirk and waved as Luhan (embarrassingly) walked away towards the exit.

There were too many cars in the parking lot, so he couldn’t even attempt guessing which car belonged to the elder. Ironic since they were currently the only two customers inside. The cars probably belonged to the workers, but the child refrained from thinking anything negative about them. It wasn’t like there was any free parking spots in the street either. Apparently, people had no jobs, or so Luhan thought to himself.

By the time he walked into the store, he handed Minho his slice of ice lemon bread and gave him back the remaining change. He disregarded his comment about taking far too long at a stupid Starbucks that was literally at the end of the block, but Luhan merely shrugged him off as he went around the counter and took his place behind the register. He couldn’t help but to feel the obnoxious butterflies filling his tummy; they were probably also causing his stupid heart rate to increase unexpectedly, but the babe couldn’t bring himself to care.

Not when he had learned the older male’s name and had learned that their hands could potentially fit perfectly together.

The rest of the day was a bliss to the child, but he couldn’t help the beautiful smile adorning his lips throughout the rest of his shift.

* * *

The next time they bumped into each other was roughly two weeks later at the super market across his job. Luhan, albeit glad that he was alone when he bumped into Sehun in the middle of the frozen food aisle, couldn’t help but to send cuss words out to the universe, for he was far too annoyed at his mother to function properly. Don’t misunderstand him. He was far from a lazy bum that would much rather force his sister to do all the grocery shopping—despite the thought crossing his head several times in the past, but he was a nice younger brother that would much rather do it himself than to pester his sister—but he liked the thought of sticking to a list.

Which is what led him to almost toss his phone across the aisle, but he figured his phone was way too expensive to do that. Instead, he practiced the stupid breathing exercises he had been doing with Jongin and his _kumbayah_ bullcrap from a few months back. And even though they weren’t doing anything to decrease his anger, they did wonders at making him realize he was about to throw almost $800 away if he destroyed his phone out of anger.

 _Wherever you are Jongin, thank you,_ the babe thought to himself.

His mother had called him three times already to add more items to the already long list. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t be angry; however, these were _not_ normal circumstances at all. Who in their right mind would call three times to add three to four extra items per phone call? Luhan’s mom, clearly, and it was the sole reason behind his sour mood. His mom hadn’t even given him money to make things worse. He was about to pay for all that crap out of his own pocket!

“You don’t look too happy, Lulu. Are you okay?”

That voice.

That was the voice Luhan was far too familiar with despite having met each other twice only. And along with that voice, the too well-known scent of the male’s cologne, the one that was so freaking bothering to the babe at first, though became some form of comfort zone after exchanging a few words with him. The man Luhan was a little too familiar with now to simply disregard like he did with most people in his daily life.

Oh Sehun.

“Look at that! We bumped into each other again!”

Yeah, and Luhan couldn’t be any happier. Except for, maybe, the fact that he was extremely pissed off just thirty seconds ago thanks to his mother. But now he was over the moon and back with the unexpected presence of the man he had been thinking about for quite a few days now.

Did that turn him into a creep?

“S-Sehun! Hi!”

 _Way to embarrass yourself_ , Luhan thought to himself.

“I’m just going to go ahead and assume you live around the area. I mean we saw each other at the Starbucks across the street and now at the market. I’m pretty sure you live around here,” said the brunet, this time teasing the child a bit to loosen him up from whatever is it that made him upset earlier.

“Yeah, I live a block away from here. All I have to do is cross the street and walk down a bit. So yes, you’re right,” said the babe, doing his best to humour the elder and succeeding at making him smile. And what a smile it was! Sehun’s eyes had turned into an adorable pair of crescent moons and Luhan couldn’t help but to stare at him in adoration. “And you? I am pretty sure I know most of my neighbors by heart. And yet, you keep coming back randomly and then disappearing again. You’re not a local here, Mr. Oh,” said the babe. And truth to be told, Luhan had absolutely no idea where this sudden confidence came from, but it had been powerful enough to push him to tease the elder.

Luhan was on fire today!

And to the child’s surprise, the male actually chuckled at his silly joke. If Luhan had been mesmerized by the man’s smile, then he was officially whipped by his chuckles. How pathetic.

“You’re right. I don’t live around the area, but I come around a lot to visit my friend. He’s going through a divorce right now and could really use some emotional support. You’ll most definitely see me around more often.”

A divorce? Most of his neighbors were open books that told him everything going on in their lives, but as far as he knew, not a single one of them was going through a divorce. Or maybe they didn’t tell Luhan about it. It was one of the perks of being the neighborhood’s favourite child—a stupid nickname he and his sister had earned through his mom, for that woman was a social butterfly and had been known amongst everyone for almost twenty-five years. Ironically, that’s how Jongin and him had met. Ten years of friendship really left a scar on you. Jongin was basically family at this point, and so were his older brothers.

In fact, neither Luhan nor his sister could walk down the street without waving at one of the neighbors sitting by the porch. It was such a cliché situation in one of those stupid fantasy books teenagers obsess over, but to Luhan and his sister, it was quite a reality they were forced to live. There wasn’t a single neighbor that didn’t know them. And as much as he loved everyone equally, sneaking around was almost impossible when every single one of them was on their asses. They weren’t only his mother’s children; they were the neighbors’ children as well, and as much as Luhan appreciated every single one of them, they were a huge portion of the reason why he had never rebelled against his mother.

Yeah, he was a goody-goody, and a proud one at that.

Maybe it was the fact that he knew everything about everyone, but he felt a little bad for not knowing which one of his neighbors was divorcing. He felt a little left out, but he could understand why would they hide it. A divorce isn’t something you can’t just tell anyone about, so Luhan understood.

“I’m sorry about your friend. But I’m glad I’ll get to see you around more. Maybe we can even become friends,” said the little honey-blonde male, sending the elder a gorgeous smile that didn’t go disregarded by the man. Luhan was precious.

“Friends? I like the sound of that.”

His ringtone—A Whole New World from Aladdin—blasted around them, killing the playful atmosphere around them in a matter of seconds. To Luhan’s surprise, the one calling was his sister and not his mom. He forced himself to smile at Sehun, but before he could pick up the phone Sehun’s words caught him off guard. “I better go. I have somewhere to be in thirty minutes, but it was nice chatting with you. Maybe next time we can have a better chat over a cup of coffee and a Mocha Frappuccino?”

D-Did Sehun indirectly ask him on a non-date? Or was it just Luhan’s delusional imagination playing tricks on him? That’s not exactly how his generation asks people out, but in Sehun’s world everything was probably different, right? How old was Sehun really?

“I’d like that very much,” said the babe, sending the elder another smile that made the brunet smile in return.

“Great! Then until then, I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day. See you around, love. Take care,” said the brunet, sending the child a playful wink as he walked away from the frozen food aisle pushing a barely full shopping cart.

Luhan realized that the shopping cart had a few boxes of Capri Sun and baby wipes, along with some essentials such as vegetables and diary products. Maybe he’d be a little bolder next time and ask him about his relationship status and whether he has kids or not. And even though Luhan knew he was going to be disappointed, he still wanted to know.

It wasn’t until he realized his ringtone was going off again that he remembered his sister was calling him. Thus, without paying any more attention to the brunet that was walking away, the child picked up the call and pulled the phone away from his ear as soon as he heard his sister screaming.

At the end, Luhan ended up being picked up from the market after finding out his mom sent his sister to deliver her debit card so he wouldn’t have to pay for everything on his own.

Call it stupidity and delusion, but Luhan was more than sure Sehun had been some sort of lucky charm, because as soon as they bumped into each other again the babe’s day got so much better.

* * *

“You can’t just call a guy cuddle-y! That’s not how it works!”

“Why is that?”

“Because a grown ass man being referred to as cuddle-y? Unheard of! You’re the only person I know that would use such word to describe someone. A fucking guy at that!”

“But I—”

“Lulu, it’s not up for a debate. Trust me, any guy would probably find that offensive.”

Luhan liked Jongin better when he went MIA on everyone. As it turns out, he had broken his phone and as punishment his mom had sent him away to see Jinki, his eldest brother. But Luhan couldn’t figure out how that was a punishment. Sending Jongin to another state where he had freedom—which needless to say, he didn’t have here with his mom—didn’t sound like a punishment to Luhan at all. And to make things worse, he came back with a new phone too—well, technically using Jinki’s old Galaxy S8 didn’t count as new, but that’s as new as it’d get (and it was an upgrade from his old Galaxy S6).

Jongin had been back for literally an hour and he had dragged Luhan to the Starbucks at the end of the block after being deprived from it for almost a whole month, or so he claimed. Truth to be told, he could see Jinki refusing to let Nini have any caffeine. Jinki was slightly on the healthier side of the food and drinks spectrum, but even so he wasn’t the best role model in Jongin’s life. Then again, allowing the boy to drink Kool-Aid every day at any bloody hour didn’t count as healthy either.

Jongin’s family was complicated. Period.

“Okay! So, if I were to refer to you as cuddle-y, would you find it offensive?” asked the babe, almost smirking at his friend since he knew Jongin too well to know the answer to that.

“No, but that’s because it’s you! If someone else walked up to me and described me as cuddle-y looking, I’d be pretty offended. It’s a different scenario, Lulu,” said the dark-haired male as they walked side by side towards the Starbucks they frequented on weekly basis, and as much as he hated himself for admitting to this, Luhan was glad he was back. It had been a long month without his friend and Luhan was nearly driven to insanity due to the lack of noise around him—courtesy of Kim Jongin, by the way.

“You’re being completely biased because it’s me! What if it was your little crush then, huh?”

Oh yeah, Luhan was about to throw Nini under the bridge.

He had been crushing on one of their neighbors around the block. The girl was Luhan’s age and had recently moved back into the neighborhood after being sent away by her own parents to “discipline her,” or so she told Luhan once when she walked into the store during his shift. And yeah, she had been around for roughly two years now, but apparently Jongin had just learned about her existence. Quite a pity, Luhan thought, for they’d make a really adorable couple.

If only she wasn’t taken.

“I—why you—look here, it’s different!”

“How so? What makes her so much different from me, Nini? Because you said that if was anyone else, you’d be offended. Does that mean she’s an exception to that rule or?”

“I seriously hate you sometimes! You know what, I’m not paying for your drink anymore. Go buy yourself your own Frappuccino!”

Luhan merely laughed at the other’s outburst and watched as Jongin stomped his feet away in annoyance. His childhood friend was really easy to tease. But don’t let that demeanor fool you! Jongin is also a little shit! He could start fights, end them, and he could also blow up a place if someone got under his skin. Luckily for everyone, they hadn’t reached that point yet, but Luhan feared someone would be stupid enough to test the boy’s limits one day.

“I can buy your Frappuccino if you want.”

Jesus Christ, Luhan was about to have a real heart attack now. Sehun had popped out of nowhere, successfully scaring the living lights out of the babe and managing to somewhat cause a mini outburst out of him in the middle of the coffee shop. Sehun was full of surprises, clearly, but Luhan would like it better if his surprises didn’t involve symptoms of a heart attack at a public place.

Apparently, Sehun thought Luhan’s little outburst was funny, because he was quite busy laughing at the child’s physical response instead of asking if he was okay.

“I’m sorry. I truly didn’t mean to scare you, but I couldn’t help it. Are you okay?” asked the brunet, placing a hand over the child’s right shoulder as he watched the younger clutching his chest trying to catch his breath. Once the babe’s fright had passed, he couldn’t help but to notice how casually great the elder looked, for he wore nothing but a simple white tee and a pair of semi-ripped, black skinny jeans. Of course, a complimentary cap couldn’t miss from such outfit, and Luhan found himself staring at the casual yet really handsome style of the elder.

_Get a grip, Luhan! Jongin is right here too!_

“I—Yeah! You just caught me off guard for a second. It’s been two weeks now, right? I haven’t seen you around much,” said the honey-blonde boy, doing his absolute best to not stare at the elder. It was a difficult task, however, for he couldn’t stop the occasional glimpses he caught of the brunet whenever he wasn’t looking.

“I didn’t have much time these past two weeks. But my friend is doing better now so he isn’t requiring me to come as often anymore. I’m still coming every two weeks to see him though. I don’t want him to feel like he’s alone.”

Luhan could have sworn that Sehun was the nicest person to walk on earth. He was a good friend, very funny and entertaining, and he could swear the male was also family oriented, though that could be up for debate. Luhan needed to find himself some friends like Sehun, because honestly Jongin was not the most reliable one when it came down to moral and emotional support. But he tried and that’s what matters.

Or maybe he had Sehun in a pedestal because of how badly he was crushing on the man.

“That’s very nice of you, Sehun. I really wish I had friends like you,” said the babe, not realizing he was pouting by the end of his statement. But when he felt Sehun’s hand ruffling his already messy hair—much like a puppy that wanted attention—Luhan’s entire face lit up. If it had been Minho the one committing such atrocity, the male wouldn’t have a hand anymore. It’d probably be gone from how hard Luhan would’ve smacked it away. But Sehun, never.

Then again, the babe was simply being biased at this point because of his growing crush on the man.

“It seems to me like your friend right there fits my criteria. He’s walking back as we speak with two drinks, one of which I am more than sure belongs to you,” said the brunet as he awkwardly smiled at the boy standing behind Luhan, which immediately caught the babe’s attention as he turned around and found his childhood friend holding two drinks, much like Sehun said.

_Damn you, Jongin. Your timing is as bad as the workers’._

“I got you your Frappuccino, Lulu. And who is this?”

Yeah, Luhan had completely forgotten to tell Jongin about his crush on Sehun. The boy didn’t even know Sehun at all so that was a lot of explaining to do. Then again, it had been the younger boy’s fault for not letting Luhan speak at all. They had been fighting about the words “cuddle-y” and “adorable” since he dragged him out of his house to go for Starbucks, and that had been roughly ten minutes ago.

Luhan couldn’t be blamed at all.

“W-Well he’s—” The babe was cut off by no one other than the brunet himself, realizing that it shouldn’t be the child’s job to introduce him at all.

“Hello! My name is Oh Sehun and I’m friends with Luhan. We met at his job a while back and we occasionally bump into each other, like right now,” said the brunet, sending both boys a polite smile that successfully melted Luhan’s heart _yet again_ , whereas Jongin merely nodded at the stranger and smiled at him back. It wasn’t a normal occurrence to meet Luhan’s friends, thus the younger boy tried his best to leave a good impression on the elder man to not make his friend look bad.

Yeah, Jongin could be a _really_ good friend sometimes.

“I’m Jongin and I’m also Luhan’s friend. Nice meeting you, Sehun,” said the dark-haired boy, almost sending his friend a confused look and wondering why was acting abnormally submissive in front of the older man.

There were a few things Jongin needed to talk about with Luhan. Preferably in private and not in front of a stranger at a public coffee shop. However, it seemed to younger that he wouldn’t have the chance to ask any questions, for his friend had turned around immediately and surprising him unexpectedly. “Nini, didn’t you say you had to go run a few errands for your mom?”

 _Please play along, Jongin_ , said the child to himself internally, hoping for his friend to actually get the message and avoid asking any questions.

But of course, Jongin just _had_ to disappoint him.

“I did?”

Luhan tried his best to stop his eye from twitching in annoyance.

“Yes, you did. Something about running across the street to buy some groceries for her. Don’t you remember? Some mushrooms and spinach, flour and yeast, does it ring a bell?” asked the honey-blonde male, internally hoping his friend would get the message and finally leave them.

Apparently, he was successful this time. For the most part, that is.

“Oh! The lasagna! Thank you for reminding me!”

If he wasn’t standing in front of his crush, Luhan would have made a sarcastic remark regarding his lack of skills in the cooking department, because the babe was more than sure that those were the ingredients to make a pizza. However, he was simply happy and thankful that Nini got the message and agreed to walk away—albeit unwillingly, clearly, but he still deserved brownie points for being a great friend.

 _Thank you, Jongin_ , thought the babe to himself internally.

As Jongin walked away, Luhan couldn’t help but to feel a shiver going down his spine as he made eye-contact with his friend, suspiciously eyeing him and Sehun before looking away from the duo and eventually out of Luhan’s sight.

Oh yeah, the babe was in deep trouble.

“Uhm—sorry about that. Jongin can come off as strong sometimes, but he’s a nice kid, I can promise you that.”

For the most part. He lacked a lot of motivation in the school department, but other than that the child was great. Luhan would be lying if he said he wasn’t proud of his childhood friend.

“He seems like a nice kid. He probably should stay away from the kitchen though. I don’t think he knows the difference in between pizza and lasagna,” said the brunet, finding it almost impossible for him to not chuckle at his own statement, and by default causing the babe to smile as well.

At least Sehun had a sense of humour.

“Yes, he could improve a little, but a lot of other foods would require flour and yeast. They aren’t limited to pizza only,” said the babe, getting ready to have a food debate with his crush despite the fact that barely cooked himself. But hey! He had to defend his Nini!

“Very true, but bread doesn’t particularly require mushrooms and spinach. And probably pineapple and pepperoni,” said the brunet, offering the child another smile that did things to Luhan’s poor heart.

Sehun clearly didn’t realize the effect he had on the babe.

“Wait, hold on! You like pineapple on pizza?” asked the babe, nearly jumping a few feet in the air at the possible revelation of Sehun and him sharing something in common.

“I appreciate it, yes. I’m also fonder of pepperoni on pizza than meat balls or bacon on it,” said the brunet, literally smiling to himself as he watched the babe gasping at the sudden revelation. It looked as if Luhan had just been given his favorite candy and Sehun couldn’t help but to admire the sight of the child’s excitement.

“Me too! I dislike meat and bacon on pizza so pineapple is definitely the way to go!”

Luhan was excited. Beyond excited actually. Sehun and he shared something in common, and the babe couldn’t help but to internally celebrate. Of course, pineapple on pizza wasn’t something trivial, but he appreciated the thought of someone finally finding the appeal of the odd combination not everyone enjoyed. It seemed like Sehun and Luhan were more similar than they thought.

“Let me order myself something really quick,” said the brunet, walking away towards the front counter whilst the babe moved to an empty table by the entrance.

And then it hit him.

This felt like an unexpected date. Is this what Sehun referred to when he proposed the idea of having some coffee together? Because honestly, Luhan was loving it. It had been so unexpected, but it all worked out nonetheless. Yes, Sehun might think of this as a hangout, but to the babe this was an unofficial date and he couldn’t be any happier.

Speaking of date, how was Luhan supposed to approach the topic of the juices and baby wipes from previous weeks ago? Wouldn’t it be weird if he suddenly brought this up even though it had been a while? Wouldn’t Sehun feel somewhat self-conscious of having Luhan around? What if he stopped talking to him altogether because of that?

No.

The babe didn’t want that to happen.

Even if nothing ever happened between them, the last thing he wanted was to lose Sehun’s friendship because he made him feel uncomfortable. Yeah, the man was much older, but that just made him more sensitive to younger generations and their tendencies, currently that being Luhan. Or what if he offended him? Up until now, the elder had been really easy to talk to, but younger boy hasn’t been considering how the brunet has been feeling around him. Sehun seems to be way too nice to ever tell the babe whenever he was feeling offended or uncomfortable.

“What’s going on in that pretty, little head, Lulu?”

The question caught the babe off guard.

The brulnet was right next to him, crunching down on the floor and handing him what seemed to be a pastry. Jesus Christ! Could Sehun get any more perfect? He was showing Luhan a new side of him and the babe was having a hard time coping with it.

“I don’t know what you like, but you’re holding a Mocha Frappuccino as we speak, so I figured you’d _maybe_ enjoy a chocolate croissant. You don’t have to eat it if you don’t like it, love. Don’t force yourself,” said the brunet, once again making the child’s heart flutter without realizing his full effect on the babe. And Luhan? Well, it’s not like he could decide whether to allow it to happen or not. It merely happened.

Sehun was slowly but surely killing him.

“N-No! I really liked them. Thank you so much, Sehun,” said the babe, offering the elder a pretty smile in return, and had he not been staring at the pastry he was holding as he read the brunet’s name on the sticker, he would have probably seen the adoration in the eyes of the brunet, for he was mesmerized by the sight of the child he was currently admiring.

Luhan was oblivious to a lot of things. He rarely noticed the way in which Sehun’s face would light up as soon as he spotted him, often catching the babe off-guard whilst he was busy doing something else, such as the current situation they were in. Luhan hadn’t even noticed the brunet pulling on the curb to park, nor had he realized he was blocking the disability entrance—the one almost everyone used out of laziness, and Sehun wasn’t different from everyone else. He was equally as lazy and refused to walk around to reach the stairs. Not to mention his car was literally by the curb on the side of the coffee shop and not by the parking lot.

Yes, adults were also lazy sometimes.

But had Luhan been paying more attention to his surroundings, he would have noticed the way in which Sehun’s face light up at the sight of his petite figure within the coffee shop. Unfortunately, Luhan’s obliviousness to his surroundings was one of the traits his older sister often bullied him for, and quite frankly, she was right. He didn’t pay attention to anything or anyone around him whenever he was with friends, and that’s definitely a negative trait of his that needed to be corrected.

But not today.

His crush was sitting down right across from him, sharing an actual table with him even though this was completely spontaneous. Luhan couldn’t care any less about whomever was around him when he had Oh Sehun with him. Screw everyone else. Screw Jongin, even though the younger male was the one that paid for his drink. Screw everyone that _wasn’t_ Sehun, because Luhan couldn’t bring himself to care at the moment.

Although he should. He lived in a place where all his neighbor knew him and Sehun was a stranger to everyone, even to Luhan up to a few weeks ago. Maybe he _should_ really be more attentive to his surroundings in case someone spotted them—other than Jongin, of course.

“So what is it? What are you thinking about?”

 _You_ , the babe thought to himself.

“Have I made you feel uncomfortable by any chance?”

Sehun blinked once.

Twice.

Did Luhan catch him off guard? Was it really that hard for him to believe that the babe was trying to find out whether he felt at ease in his presence or not? Was that too weird? Luhan had absolutely _no idea_ how to explain to the brunet that he wanted him to feel comfortable around him. Likewise, Luhan didn’t want be tip-toeing around him and attempting to figure out whether it was okay to say a few things around the elder or not.

“Where did that come from?” Asked the brunet, genuinely confused by the child’s sudden change.

“W-Well, I’ve been thinking that you make it really easy for me to feel at ease. I’m not exactly a social butterfly and other than my neighbors, I find it difficult to come out of my shell sometimes. But I’m very comfortable around you, and I want you to feel comfortable around me as well.”

Okay, Luhan could be a cheese ball sometimes. Let him live.

“You’re way too sweet to be real, you know that?” Luhan couldn’t help the sudden blush that decorated his cheeks. He had been told he was sweet, but it had a different effect on him when it came from his crush. Either that or he was simply too whipped by the brunet. “I am comfortable. Other than my friend you’re probably the one person I’m the most comfortable around whenever I come here. You were right, Lulu. This is somewhat a tight community and everyone seems to know everyone. I won’t lie and say that I get a few looks that make me uncomfortable—” Luhan couldn’t help but interrupt the elder for a second but he had to agree with him.

“Such as the two girls behind the counter that are currently staring at you? Because trust me, I have been noticing since the first time we bumped into each other,” said the honey-blonde boy, almost laughing at the scrambling girls as soon as Sehun turned around to confirm whether the babe was lying or being honest. But Luhan was right. The two girls that were previously leaning over the counter and staring at him from behind were now attempting to busy themselves with something else, and Luhan couldn’t help but to smile to himself.

Sehun let out a chuckle before going back to their previous conversation.

“Yes, quite an accurate example. But I meant it in a more judgmental way, I suppose. Although, I must admit that looks of admiration really boost up my self-esteem. At this age, they mean a lot, sweetheart. You’ll get here one day,” said the brunet, standing up to get his drink after hearing one of the girls calling out his name.

Was this the open door Luhan had been waiting for? Had Sehun finally opened up the can of worms Luhan had been anticipating for weeks now?

“Here,” said Sehun, handing the babe another pastry without a name sticker. _Odd._

“But you already bought me something to much on,” said the child, earning himself a pretty smile from the brunet and further increasing the pace of his already fast-beating heart.

“It’s apparently on the house. It might be another chocolate croissant since it’s what I originally got you earlier,” said the brunet, watching as the younger boy took the paper bag and opened it.

 _Those snakes! Jongin and I come here every week and we have never gotten anything free,_ thought the babe to himself but immediately light up at the sight of yet _another_ chocolate croissant. Bless Sehun and his handsome face and probably sexy physique in the eyes of everyone else—Luhan included.

“Thank you! I’ll eat it well!” said the babe, taking a bite to prove his point. Maybe it was the fact that it came from Sehun, but the chocolate croissant tasted extra good, and Luhan couldn’t help but send the elder a happy smile as he munched on the snack. “Sehun, you said I’ll get to your age one day, right? How old are you?”

The brunet smiled to himself as he took another sip of his cappuccino—Luhan thought to himself that maybe the brunet was trying to look cool, because who in their right mind drinks something so hot in the middle of summer? —taking his time before answering the babe’s question. “Why not try guessing?”

Was Sehun teasing him? How could he possibly guess his age when people couldn’t even guess Luhan’s age? He still got stopped randomly in the middle of the street in the mornings when the cops thought he was ditching school! Luhan was the worst person to guess people’s age!

“I’m bad at this game so I hope you don’t get offended,” said the babe, earning himself another smile from the brunet. “Maybe early thirties?” asked the babe, slowly testing the waters and trying to get a quick answer out of the brunet.

“You’re boosting up my self-esteem even more. Please keep going.”

So not early thirties. If he went higher, then the child would most likely reconsider his crush on the brunet. He was okay with someone older, but twice his age? His mother would kill him.

“I can’t. I suck at this game and I don’t want to offend you.”

_Play it safe, Lulu. Play it safe for now._

“I actually just turned forty-one not too long ago,” said the brunet, successfully managing to make the younger choke on a piece of croissant he was in the middle of swallowing. It had to be a joke. It _must_ be a joke! Sehun didn’t look any older than thirty! Maybe thirty-five, but not older than that.

_Mom, I am a disgrace! I fell for someone who could potentially be my father!_

“I don’t believe that. You don’t look any older than thirty. Are you sure you’re not lying to me?”

_Please be lying. Don’t make me feel worse about myself for liking you._

“Coming from someone that looks like a teenager but is very well at the drinking age, I believe you understand my situation, don’t you?”

Hold up a second. How did Sehun know that? The babe hadn’t mentioned anything about his age yet.

“Don’t get smart with me, Mr. Oh. I know very well I haven’t mentioned anything about my age. I could be older for all you know but happen to have amazing genes, just like you apparently,” said the babe, giving himself brownie points for successfully coming off as smooth instead of blabbering and stuttering.

And to his surprise, Sehun was laughing. Not smiling or chuckling like in previous occasions, he was fully laughing and Luhan couldn’t believe himself—the sound of the elder’s laugher was the most beautiful thing he had heard. Forget his chuckles! Sehun’s laughter took the crown and there was nothing anyone could say to change his mind.

“I learned the hard way that you and your family are well-known around here. All I had to tell my friend was that the adorable cashier at the community store was one of the reasons why I keep coming back here, despite how judged everyone else makes me feel sometimes,” said the brunet, taking another sip of his coffee before he continued with his statement. “Let’s see, everyone calls you Lulu but you mentioned that already. You are twenty-one and you graduated a few months ago. You own two dogs and, this isn’t confirmed yet, but you have cats as well. Your mom worked at the same store where you currently work for roughly twenty years, which is also unconfirmed because my friend, Johnny by the way, moved here roughly seven years ago. I was told you have royalty status here, and you seem to be the heart of the store you work at. Did I miss anything?”

Luhan blinked once.

Twice.

Thrice.

Did Sehun run a background check on him without his permission? Johnny Suh, that sly fox! If it wasn’t for the fact that they had known each other since the male had moved into the neighborhood, Luhan would have taken his Frappuccino and walked away from Sehun. The older man knew way too much about him despite barely knowing each other for roughly a month or so. But the babe couldn’t bring himself to be angry at Johnny. Not when the obnoxious giraffe was one of the coolest neighbors around, and as much as Luhan hated him right now—he didn’t really hate him but he needed to be dramatic—he couldn’t bring himself to be angry.

Sehun was interested in him, if not romantically then at least in a very platonic way. Luhan hated himself a bit for being overly excited. He shouldn’t be excited. It should be a bit suspicious that Sehun knew so much about him, but he found out all those things through Johnny—whom Luhan happened to borderline love—and that itself meant that Sehun was someone who could be trusted.

“Impressive, Mr. Oh. I never thought you’d find out so much about me in a matter of weeks. Meanwhile all I know is your full name. Isn’t that a bit unfair?”

Sehun sent the babe a playful smirk and brought the cup of coffee close to his lips again. And Luhan’s delusional mind was playing tricks on him again because for some odd reason, the sight of the male smirking as he took a sip of coffee was by far one of the hottest things he had ever seen. Regular people can’t look _this_ good while drinking coffee. Luhan sometimes thought that the brunet was a model in disguise and was merely waiting to see how long it’d take Luhan to recognize him.

Luhan had tried googling him as soon as he found out his name, but he couldn’t find anyone under that name. Or face as a matter of fact.

Everything about Sehun was just so seductive. It was starting to frighten the babe, for he never expected to be _this_ attracted to anyone. The child found himself biting his lower lip at the sight of the elder’s veins popping out whenever he grasped the paper cup with a little too much strength, and sometimes licking his lips whenever the brunet’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down whilst he took sips of his coffee. To add the cherry on top, Sehun’s lips were so plush and kissable that Luhan found himself fantasizing how they’d feel against his own rosy pair, nearly imagining what’d be like to mold them together and fight for dominance over each other.

Yeah, Luhan’s imagination was clearly running wild.

_Control yourself, Lulu, you’ll scare him off!_

“It is unfair so I’ll make you a deal. Since I know a few things about you, I’ll let you ask me ten questions to get to know me better. Are you up for that?”

“Ten won’t cut it for me. I tend to ask a lot of questions,” said the child, taking a sip of his Frappuccino and lowering his head in embarrassment. He, however, missed the way in which Sehun bit his lower lip as he stared at the way in which the babe gently sucked on the straw of his drink.

Obliviousness was seriously Luhan’s life curse.

“Let’s make it ten for now and we’ll take it from there,” said the brunet, rearranging his position and getting on a more comfortable position.

Luhan couldn’t help the smile that decorated his lips.

“Fine. Let’s start with what do you do for a living?”

“I’m a photographer. I work with influential figures and I work under several different agencies that mostly focus on magazines. I do like nature a lot, however, so I focus on nature a lot, too.”

Impressive. Sehun wasn’t only good looking, but he also had a successful career. And to think he’s the photographer when he should be the one posing for the pictures. Luhan couldn’t help but to think that he could have chosen modeling as a career. He had the face, the height, the proportions, and the personality to make the photos come to life.

“That’s amazing. What about hobbies?”

“Well, as previously mentioned, I enjoy nature. I travel occasionally just to get out of the daily routine. Nature is a form of comfort zone for me. And regular hobbies? I like to go bowling, I enjoy reading, and whenever we both have the chance, I try spending as much time as possible with my kid.”

Well fuck.

And of course, Sehun had kids. There was no way someone as perfect as him was single. Yet, for some unknown reason, Luhan couldn’t help but to stare at his ring finger. It was void of anything and it somewhat gave the child some hope.

“Is that so? How many kids do you have?”

Might as well find out if he was about to wreck someone’s family.

“One only. He’s almost your age actually. His name is Oh Haowen and he’s a younger replica of myself. He is currently in college and wants to study law,” said the brunet, smiling to himself as he talked about his kid.

Luhan couldn’t help but to smile to himself. Clearly, the elder was very fond of his son. Maybe it was time for him to face reality, for he had no chances with Sehun. The male was twice his age with a successful career and a beautiful son. There was no way he could be part of that perfect picture. And what if the male wasn’t married? What if he had a girlfriend and this whole time he had been confusing friendliness with delusion?

“That’s sweet. I’m sure Haowen will be an amazing lawyer one day. Your wife must be proud of him too!” said Luhan, almost dreading the fact that he had to sound cheerful in order to not give away his sudden mood change. Because even though he was happy for Sehun’s perfect life, he couldn’t help the feelings of sadness he was experiencing.

And he would have kept his pity party going had it not been for Sehun’s unexpected laughter.

“Wife? Sweetheart, that woman and I are history. We work better as friends and co-parents than as a couple. The only good thing that came out of our short and immature marriage was Haowen, and even that was an accident. But I appreciate the humor,” said the brunet, still laughing to himself as he took a sip of his coffee again whilst attempting to stop himself from choking.

So he really was divorced? Could it be that Luhan still had a chance?

“Rude! I don’t think Haowen will appreciate you calling him an accident,” said the babe, taking another sip of his drink before continuing, “then what about a girlfriend? I’m sure you have one. Have you seen yourself, Mr. Oh?”

Where did the sudden confidence come from, Luhan had no idea, but he would take advantage of it for as long as he could.

“I haven’t committed to anyone since my ex-wife and I divorced. Haowen has been a priority in my life, but recently someone has caught my interest. They might not be looking for anything serious, but neither am I technically. It could work out, don’t you think?” Sehun was currently staring at Luhan with something in between lust and desire, and it made Luhan flush from top to bottom. The babe had never experienced first-hand flirting and Sehun had honestly caught him off guard.

He was insinuating something and Luhan couldn’t tell if he was being serious or if interpreted the situation wrong. But he was too far in to back out now.

“It’s a possibility. Why don’t you ask them properly? Who knows, they might be into you as well.”

Jesus Christ! Did he really manage to say that without stuttering? Without blushing? Without breaking eye contact?

Before Sehun could respond, the brunet’s standard ringtone broke their staring contest as the elder pulled out the device from his back pocket and excused himself to answer it.

Luhan gave himself a few seconds to breathe in and out, taking in as much oxygen as he could, clutching his chest to calm his nerves. This has been the most grown-up conversation he had ever had with anyone that wasn’t a customer at his job or his neighbors. He had dealt with the situation quite well, but that didn’t mean he was off the hook with Sehun.

What if he had taken everything the wrong way?

In the process of calming himself down, he didn’t notice the elder approaching him again. Unfortunately, he didn’t take a seat across from him again, nor did he resume their previous conversation.

“Sorry, sweetheart, but I have to go. I was called into the studio just now,” said the brunet, rubbing his forehead and somewhat making Luhan realize that he looked really good doing something stupidly normal. Luhan seriously had a problem and it was really starting to frighten him. Everything Sehun did made him look abnormally attractive.

“That sucks. I was really looking forward to asking my remaining seven questions,” said the child, also standing up and getting ready to leave the coffee shop along with the elder. However, he didn’t get to walk away as he intended, for the male was stretching out his hand and merely staring at the babe with anticipation. “Hand me your phone.”

Was that an order or a request?

It honestly didn’t matter, because Luhan was okay with either one of them. Hence why, without hesitating, the babe surrendered his phone to the hands of the man in front of him, internally screaming at the thought of having a way of communicating with the brunet. Before he realized it, the sound of Sehun’s ringtone was heard around the store again, surprising Luhan for a moment and the workers behind the counter as well.

“Got it. I’ll shoot you a message as soon as I’m done so we can resume our conversation. Until then, take care, love,” said the brunet, handing the babe his phone back and walking away. Luhan couldn’t help but to smile to himself, turning into a blushing mess as he watched the figure of the elder walking away from him and approaching a black BMW parked by the curb.

Well, at least the babe now knew what to look for whenever he bumped into Sehun again at a random location, such as the market right across the street—or around the parking lot at the Starbucks if there was a next time.

As the babe walked away—holding the half-eaten chocolate croissant along with the one that was still intact—he couldn’t help but to smile to himself again at the thought of Sehun contacting him first. He had a lot of explaining to do since Jongin would definitely question him later, but that’s okay. Luhan never hid anything from the younger male anyways and Jongin would never judge him. If anything, he’d encourage the babe to keep trying to get close to the brunet.

And as he reached his house, he couldn’t help but to notice a new message notification on his phone, which he probably missed because he was daydreaming about Sehun. And to his surprise, the number had already been saved on his phone.

**Handsome Stranger (4:15 PM)**

_Thanks for the non-date, sweetheart. I’ll  
contact you as soon as I’m out of work._

Luhan couldn’t help the blush that covered his cheeks.

Sehun was seriously going to be the death of him and the child was more than ready to embrace his demise.


End file.
